Doorway saddles



Oct. 27, 1959 P. J. CAMPO 2,909,815l

DOORWAY SADDLES Filed Deo. 19. 1956 Kivu-mlm' INVENTOR PETER J. CAMPO '7 BY lATT NEY United States Patent C DOORWAY SADDLES Peter J. Campo, South Ozone Park, N.Y.

Application December 19, 1956, Serial No. 629,295

1 Claim. (Cl. 20-64) This invention relates to thresholds or saddles used to shield and cap the floor areas beneath doors in doorways to finish olf the flooring or to provide a protection for' such heavily travelled areas, or to act as an alinem'ent and abutment member for a door edge or all of these.

Such saddles are conventionally formed in lengths to be cut to size to t a doorway and usually have a hollow generally channel-shaped contour with depending feet to contact the floor at certain points only, the saddle being placed in the doorway to embrace and cap the floor construction material there beneath. It is then fixed in place for example, by wood screws passed through the saddle and into the oor. Such saddles are usually made of Wood but plastic materials have been proposed therefor. Also, they are usually formed as one elongated strip, but it has been proposed to form the channel-shape from two or more interlocking members.

One of the problems which exists with many doors and cooperating saddles or thresholds is weather proofing. Where the door is exposed to an environment on one side which is undesired on the other side, means are provided to seal orf the door when closed, to prevent passage of air therethrough from the undesired environment.' ASuch means have been, in some cases, arranged on or attached to the saddle over the threshold area of the door. For example, it is recognizedl that a door which badly ts its saddle at the lower edge thereof provides a very bad leakage path for cold air intoI or from the interior space lguarded by said door.

It is accordingly the principal object of the present invention to provide an improved form of saddle for a threshold area of a doorway which has means there'- with associated to present a seal for contact with a door placed in said doorway.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a saddle or threshold which serves the dual purpose of protecting the doorway entrance floor area while acting as a sealing means for contact with lower areas of the door in the doorway, the sealing means being readily replaceable when worn or otherwise ineicient as a seal.

According to the invention, generally there is provided an .elongated saddle adapted to be cut to any desired length to suit requirements in use which has a contour comprised of a pair of staggered steps and a riser connecting the steps at one edge, the riser carrying -an elongated elastic or resilient strip, of rubber for example, which projects beyond the upper step in a direction, to act as both a resilient buffer-stop and sealing means, for a door hung to cooperate with said saddle.

More specifically, the saddle according to the invention comprises a pair of staggered steps one above the other attached at one common edge to an upright riser, said riser having a horizontal groove or slot longitudinal thereof into which there is placed a sealing strip having one face bearing a cooperating shape to interlock with the slot and having its other face projecting outwardly over the lower step and shaped to act as a sealing surface when contacted by the lower edge of a door swung into position over the lower step.

The strip may be inserted into the riser from the front after assembly or formation of the steps and riser or may be inserted inthe riser before assembly or formation.

4The shape of the strip may be such as'to make its major duty that of sealing or alternatively, that of shock-absorbing or the two results may be equally effective.

The material used for the strip may be rubber, plastic, felt or like resilient or sealing or shock-absorbing material and the saddle -body may be Wood, plastic, or metal and may be molded or otherwise formed in one piece or be formed of sections or portions suitably fastened together.

The saddle may be cut to dimensions desired with the resilient strip in place or with the strip displaced from the riser'.

By virtue of the vconstruction according -to the invention there is provided an economical saddle or threshold possessing the advantages of sealing and of shock-absorbing when used in a doorway having a swinging or pivoted door.

The strip mounted on the riser is replaceable without replacement of the whole saddle which results in ad- Vantage in use including economy and the best possible sealing effect at all times.

This invention provides, in brief compass, an elongated saddle or threshold having a cross-section comprised of arr upper plateau or step projecting in one direction, a lower plateau or step projecting in the other direction, a substantially upright slotted or grooved riser or Stringer connecting said plateaus at their common end and a resilient strip longitudinally of the riser in a horizontal plane and replaceably mounted in the slot thereof.

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawing which illustrates certain modes of performing the present invention and in which:

Figure 1 is a side-elevation, with certain areas in cross-section, of one form of the saddle and seal according to the present invention, and showing a cooperative door in dotted lines;

Figure 2 is a front elevation of a portion of the saddle of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a cross-section of the sealing means of Figure 1, showing one manner of securing the seal to the saddle;

Figure 4 is a detail in cross-section, of a lirst modified form of sealing means and a modied manner of securing the seal to the saddle;

Figure 5 is a further modified form of sealing means and another modilied manner of securing the seal to the saddle; and

Figure 6 is an isometric View of the saddle according to the invention as shown in Figure l.

'Referring now specically to the drawing and to Figures 1, 2,73 and 6 thereof, the saddle or threshold according to the invention, is indicated generally at 10 and comprises an elongated strip of wood formed of a specilic contour as illustrated. This may be best defined as comprising van upper step 11, a lower staggered step 17 and a riser 16 connecting the two steps front end to back end to form the pair of staggered steps hereinbefore defined. The step-contour of strip or saddle 10 is preferably achieved by forming the steps 11, 17 and riser 16 as integral pieces, although any or each may be a separate member suitably attached to the others.

The formed contour as shown is provided with integral downwardly projecting legs 19 and 20 which are adapted to contact the floor surface in the area of the door threshold Where the saddle l@ is to be used. For example, as shown in Figure 1, a conventional oor 14 of wood may extend to and through a doorway (not shown) which is to be protected by saddle 15. The saddle is therefore placed over the threshold area of floor 14 with the depending legs 19 and 20 in contact with the floor 14 as weli as the front abutments 18 (Figure 3) which equally serve to raise the main inner surfaces of the saddle from contact with the cor. Thus, irregularities in the floor surface and level are compensated for and the saddle may be rmly held in place by woodscrews 12 (Figure l) passed through `the body of steps 11 and 17 respectively and into the body of wood flooring 14.

As shown, particularly in Figures 1 and 6, upright riser 16 presents a clear at face extending beyond step 11 which can serve as an abutment or stop for a door swung to move inthe doorway being protected, such a door being indicated dotted in Figure l at 21.

1n accordance with the present invention, there is provided means for presenting a resilient, projecting member attached to riser 16 in position to be contacted by the lower edge of a door suitably swung to be positioned, when closed, over the step 17 of saddle 10, the door being so indicated, dotted, in Figure l. To this end, as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3, the riser 16 is longitudinally slotted in a horizontal plane with a T-shaped slot 28 and slot 28 is adapted to receive a bumper 15 having at one side a neck portion 26 and two wings 27 which together form a T-shape complementary to slot 28. The other side or face of bumper is curved, such as semi-circular, to present a sealing face against which the door can seat when closed and against which it can bump when allowed to swing freely to closed position. Bumper-seal 15 is formed of resilient material such as rubber and accordingly can readily be forced into T-slot 28 and be interlocked and held in position by its own elasticity, although it is obvious that, if desired, the T-shaped end 26-27 can be glued in the seat 28. Easy removal and replacement of the rubber bumper-seal 15 can also be undertaken.

In Figure 4, there is shown a modified form of sealing means comprising a fiat projecting strip 30 of rubber or like resilient material having a curved front face and projecting wings 31 on the other side which engage in a shallow horizontal T-slot 32 in riser 16. The form 30 of Figure 3 will provide more of a bumper action and less sealing action than the form 15 of Figures 1-3, by virtue of the lesser contact area of strip to door edge and the greater protrusion of the strip outwardly beyond riser 16 toward the door edge and over step 17.

The strip 30 of Figure 4 is inserted into slot 32 either by sliding in the strip longitudinally or by warping same in from the front and may require adhesive attachment in some forms of use.

Referring now to Figure 5, there is shown a further modification of the invention. In this form, riser 16 has longitudinally thereof a horizontal slot 37 which has sides tapering inwardly to a small extent, namely, an undercut or interlocking slot. The sealing strip 36 is formed of rubber or like resilient material and has a large curved front surface 36 for contacting the door. Its general cross-sectional contour is that of a truncated cone having CII El l the base concavely dished as at 38 and presenting sloping sides which are complementary to the angular sides of undercut slot 37. By virtue of the shape of strip 35 it is possible to readily insert same into slot 37 by squeezing together the outer ends of the strip to increase the concavity of face 38 and, when in the slot 37, the Strip will spring into locked position by its own resiliency. Also the concave surface 38 leaves an air gap 39` between the rear of the strip 35 and the adjacent face of slot 37 which can act as an air chamber to yield under pressure when the door is closed upon the strip, thus ensuring greater sealing contact and greater reduction of noise and shock when the door is forcibly impelled against the bumper strip 35.

Modifications of the device illustrated can be made without departure from the spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, while the material shown for the saddle 1t) is wood, it is obvious that other materials, such as plastic or metal, could be utilized. Furthermore, while the saddle 10 is shown as a unitary molding, it may be formed of one or more pieces, suitably attached after manufacture. For example, riser 16 may be formed as a separate piece for ease of attachment of strip 15 or 30 or 35 and the riser and strip then attached to the steps 11 and 17 by any conventional means. Also, the riser and steps may be made of different material.

The seal-bumper 15, 30 or 35 has been shown as rubber but any sealing and/ or shock-absorbing material may be used. Foam rubber, molded plastic or felt could be utilized to suit requirements of sealing or shock-absorbing with respect to any door installation. The sealbumper may also be hollow-cored.

Futhermore, while the means for attaching the strips 15 or 30 to the riser 16 have been shown as integral with the body of the seal strips it is obvious that these may be separate therefrom initially and suitably attached for final assembly to the front sealing section.

The saddle 11 may be cut to desired length before the sealing strip is mounted therein and the sealing strip may then be cut and fitted into place. Alternatively, the strip may be assembled in place in the riser and the nished saddle unit cut to desired dimension.

What is claimed is:

In combination a doorway threshold structure of the type embracing a pair of offset, inclined steps connected by a riser having a T-slot, the incline receiving the door being of slight inclination while the other incline has a sharp inclination, a combined sealing and buffering element removably secured to the riser, said element defining in cross section a T-shaped portion and a connecting semi-circular portion, said T-shaped portion being inserted into the T-slot of the riser and said semicircular portion being of solid cross section and operative to buffer and seal a door swinging over the door receiving incline t0- wards the riser.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 794,424 Petit July 11, 1905 1,944,440 Lehman Jan. 23, 1934 1,998,791 Schanz Apr. 23, 1935 2,779,070 Keller Ian. 29, 1957 2,819,065 Jones Jan. 7, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 463,557 Germany July 30, 1928 182,316 Switzerland July 16, 1936 

